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Screenwriting structure Part 7 The Monomyth

The Hero's Journey or Monomyth

“a hero ventures forth from the world of the common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man.” (30).

–Joseph Campbell, The Hero with a Thousand Faces

Screenwriting structure REALLY is where … Why? Because sometimes, a very well structured screenplay can SELL. Sure, they might end up changin’ the shit out of it but if your structure is really, really outstanding, IT very likely WILL NOT CHANGE.

The , , , — doesn’t matter what you call it — is, in my opinion, where the rubber meets the road in screenwriting structure. Now before I move on, I’ve heard it all before…

The hero’s journey is formulaic!

I don’t want to write movies the way Hollywood does!

I don’t believe in the hero’s journey!

To me, just like knowing basic screenplay formatting, a screenwriter really should know the hero’s journey as a basic foundation on which to base his or her screenwriting structure.

Why?

Because in using some form of the hero’s journey in your own screenwriting structure, you will go a hell of a long way in communicating both the EXTERNAL and the INTERNAL story of your story.

The internal story?

Yup. Otherwise known as your Protagonist’s .

One of the reasons stories told with some version of the monomyth do so well at the boxoffice is because they hit us very hard. Especially on the INSIDE… Our psyche.

The monomyth is very likely the oldest form of storytelling there is… The Hero’s Journey, or monomyth, speaks to just about everyone on an level or in other words, a structure that is strategically put together in response to the collective wishes of a group — for our use, the group being the eventual audience of our film.

Through strategic use of metaphor and symbolism, the very best stories live on in perpetuity. This is why we’re still learning about today. This is why we pass these same myths down. Myths started out as sacred tales worthy of a tribe’s admiration, respect, and even fear. They often touched upon a tribe’s Gods and the mysteries of how life came to be so of course, tribespeople were mesmerized and passed these stories down to current day… Especially when these stories revolved around a central character…

The .

Stories and movies are no different. If a story or movie connects DEEP INSIDE of us, we will certainly turn right around and tell others about it. And no, not all our modern stories require a hero anymore… A fits quite well these days.

In other words, we keep evolving the monomyth… We push it — tweak it — as we and our audiences evolve — books and movies being OUR myths of today.

No longer does the hero of a story have to be an outright hero… We are obviously more sophisticated than the audiences that used to sit around the campfire and listen to the tales of how the world came to be so we can now HANDLE a hero with flaws… We can now handle a hero that isn’t all good yet using the monomyth in some form for your story will still HIT your audience on a deep level because these are events that should be so powerful that we are eager to swallow them whole… We are eager to jump on the Protagonist’s train and ride along with him or her to the very end.

The mythic journey structure, or some form of it, takes into account, your Protagonist’s transformational arc and if you strategically place your story events and obstacles in certain places for maximum impact on your audience — and DO IT WELL — you will be handsomely rewarded as a screenwriter.

That’s the very reason it’s called a . The journey of your Protagonist is two-fold:

  1. External - where and how you PHYSICALLY take your Protagonist through your story.
  2. Internal - where and how you INTERNALLY take your Protagonist through your story.

If done correctly, the events themselves will put your Protagonist into motion so that by the time he or she reaches the end of your story, he or she is internally transformed as well as having achieved his or her external goal (or not). The hero’s journey helps us to convey universal truths about one’s personal self-discovery and self-transcendence, one’s role in society, and the relationship between the two.

In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a movie or read a book that did NOT contain some aspect of the hero’s journey… No, the author or screenwriter may not have purposely written their story from the perspective of the hero’s journey but because this kind of storytelling is intrinsic in all of us in one way or another i.e., we all tend to touch upon specific aspects of STORY…

And not to discount ’s contribution but this was the way WE were telling stories from the beginning of time. Just like studied movies and came up with a road map of the three act structure, so did Joeseph Campbell research and study mythic storytelling and give us a basis of screenwriting structure.

Unk

EDIT: Somebody left a comment and asked if THIS is a good time to try and get an agent… Unfortunately, I accidentally deleted it because it got caught by the SPAM plugin and I forgot to DE-SPAM it. Yeah, that’s what they call it.

My answer: Hell yeah! Anytime is a good time except around Christmas and New Years… So if you’re gonna do it — get cracking!

Unk out.




Thursday: 29 November 2007|1300|Under Structure

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Comments

16 Responses to “Screenwriting structure Part 7 The Monomyth”

  1. Carlo on Thursday: 29 November 2007|1359

    I can’t wait for the ‘Screnwriting Structure’ package of this when it’s done. I can sell it off just like your ‘Transformational Character Arc’ series.
    LOL
    :P

  2. Unk on Thursday: 29 November 2007|1422

    Sell it off?

    SELL IT OFF?

    Cool.

    Unk

  3. Lucy on Thursday: 29 November 2007|1501

    OMG I love you I want to have your babies.

    This is going on my LIST OF WONDER over at my site. That ok?

  4. Unk on Thursday: 29 November 2007|1503

    Babies?

    BABIES?

    Cool.

    Unk

  5. Tom on Thursday: 29 November 2007|1505

    I already read Hero With A Thousand Faces… I want a refund.

  6. Unk on Thursday: 29 November 2007|1512

    Refund?

    REFUND?

    Cool.

    Unk

  7. Carlo on Thursday: 29 November 2007|1546

    Cool?

    COOL?

    Not cool.

    pUnk

    :P

  8. Lucy on Thursday: 29 November 2007|1635

    I’ve pencilled you in for a week next thurs Unk. Bring chocolate and porno. I’ll bring beer. Sneak in though cos I’m married. And watch out for the bear traps.

  9. Unk on Thursday: 29 November 2007|1707

    Wow! A whole week?

    How about I bring the beer? I don’t have any porno…

    Bear traps not a problem.

    Unk

  10. Ryan on Thursday: 29 November 2007|2324

    As I read these when you post them. They make tons of sense. Things that I don’t even think about. I can totally see the character arc in the movies that I watch. Like I said before, I’m new to all this screenwriting and just learning on my own. I’ve been going to the library to check out some books. I don’t want to buy any cause I don’t know which are good or bad. Can you shed some light on this for me? Is Syd Field a good author? That’s the only guy that has a couple different books there, and I’ve been reading them. Since I’m new to this, what he’s said makes sense to me, just like what you have said. Who’s/what’s a good book and who’s not? I’m interested in comedies, where’s a good place to learn about that type of screenplay or is it all going to be the same whether it’s comedy, action, drama, etc….? Thanks for your time.

  11. Lucy on Friday: 30 November 2007|0439

    “Wow, a whole week?”

    I’m like pringles… once you pop you can’t stop, lol

  12. Unk on Friday: 30 November 2007|1621

    Ryan,

    I was just crediting Syd Field as being the one who OFFICIALLY i.e., published his take on movies and 3 Act Structure. I don’t necessarily recommend his books to learn from although I have certainly read them all. Especially since at the time I read them, there wasn’t a lot available TO read.

    I would definitely read his books when you have the time and you’ve already read and maintain THOSE books that you want to have within reach while you’re writing.

    If you check out the forum, I’ve got a list of books there that will definitely get you started.

    Lucy,

    I’ve never had a pringle in my life… Are they really that good?

    Unk

  13. spatula on Friday: 30 November 2007|2315

    Pringles are delicious. Just be careful not to get your hand stuck in the tub… good post, by the by.

  14. bobbie on Sunday: 2 December 2007|0908

    unk:
    just wondering if you’re going to post your 4 act structure up here sometime. i was one of the lucky ones you gave it to a couple of years ago and wondered if it’s undergone any changes. i’ve done two scripts with it and it sure makes it easier. just seems appropriate since you’re talking about structure anyway?

    bobbie

  15. Unk on Sunday: 2 December 2007|1137

    bobbie… How the hell are ya? Long time no hear from! I don’t remember reading those two scripts… LOL.

    Funny, that question was just asked of me earlier in an email…

    I imagine I can throw something up by the end of the series… It has drastically changed since your copy.

    We won’t tell anyone who you are but bobbie is a highly sought after pro screenwriter.

    Thanks for stopping by.

    Unk

  16. Scott on Friday: 11 January 2008|1502

    Ryan,

    Just a thought on books. One book I always have with me when I am writing is Karl Iglasis’ “Writing for emotional impact”. It has a barrage of tips and tricks on getting the right emotional impact out of any type of scene you are writing. It may be something you open up after you’ve learnt your structure and basics, but it is a great way to add your voice to the script.

    Unk, didn’t mean to step on your large toes, just adding my two cents.

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